Personally, I see the tarot as a messenger, and through its symbolism, which has deepened throughout the ages, it is uncannily able to give us messages and insight about our own lives and specific situations, helping us see what we are unable to see, or unwilling to face.

It is a truth teller - there are no lies from a tarot spread, and this can be both uncomfortable and comforting. Through tarot readings you are closer to being able to learn to listen to the wisdom within, and in this way it means that you may hear things you already know but are afraid to acknowledge, equally it can reassure that a decision is right for you at any given time.

The key with tarot readings is that through a combination of the symbolism, the question, the positions of the spread and the reader’s intuition you are given a unique and unbiased insight into a particular problem or question that is overshadowing your life at that time.

Many texts have attempted to uncover how the tarot works. Carl Jung identified the concept of synchronicity, simply put this is the way in which the collective unconscious "connects" so that we are all able to benefit from the greater consciousness of the universe.

There is also the concept of energy connection, borne out of scientific fact and based on quantum physics. That is that all things are made of energy, and therefore our energy fields naturally intermingle, regardless of space and time creating an element of cause and effect.

Combine the concept of energy interconnection and synchronicity and there is some clarity as to how tarot can work - the energy fields of querent and reader and cards are able to interconnect so that the cards can be chosen, the reader interpret and the querent benefit.

Taking this further then tarot readings are a link between symbol, question and meaning. Thus a reading can take place face to face, over the telephone or online... the possibilities are endless.

So what about the major and minor arcanas?

The major arcana are the biggies! These are the 22 cards which depict the momentous occasions, and significant experiences that help shape and direct us in life. They are beyond our control and when they turn up in a spread indicate something incredibly significant is within the querents’ energies.

The impact of these cards cannot be underestimated, often when a major arcana appears in a reading this indicates that the energy it reflects is the key to the answer for the querent. When a reading has a predominance of major arcana cards, well, that area is incredibly important for the growth of the querent, and there are major lessons to be learnt.

The minor arcana are the day to day cards, these 56 cards are split into 4 suits: wands (or rods), cups, pentacles (or coins) and swords.

Each suit is connected to one of the four elemental dignitaries: Wands = Fire, Cups = Water, Pentacles = Earth and Swords = Air.

These elements all have energies with which they are associated and therefore connected to the suits, pentacles/earth relate to practical matters, money, career and how you get on and do something, swords/airs relates to attitudes and intellect, how you think about something, wands/fire is related to high energy, excitement and creativity, how you come up with an idea, and lastly cups/water is related to healing and emotions, how you feel about something.

I like to think of the elements and suits in the following way: I think about my garden (swords/air) and have the idea to plant a new rose bush (wands/fire), I go and buy the plant and set about planting it (pentacles/earth) and as a result feel satisfied and happy with my accomplishment (cups/water).

When a minor arcana card turns up in your reading then it indicates that the message is something that is within your power to control, it will signify a part of your personality, the presence of another person or an event or experience that can be managed.

Each minor suit is further divided into three sections; the “pip” or numbered cards, the court cards and the aces.

The numbered cards take us through a variety of daily occurrences relating to the suit’s underlying energy (rather like the example above!). The courts are the “personalities” of the suit; King being the controlling energy, Queen the receptive energy, Knight the adolescent energy, all spikey and unpredictable and the page is the new energy coming in. Lastly the aces are the best the suit has to offer, bringing forth great opportunity and energy, and I feel is the connecting card between the major and minor arcana in each suit.

When you go for a reading then, the reader will take all this into account, the symbolism on the cards, whether there are any major arcana cards in the spread and where they have fallen, how the cards interrelate together, and what this says about your situation, with the spread positions, your question, their intuitive response to the reading and quite a lot more. It sounds complex but in fact becomes second nature the more you work with your deck and the closer you become to the symbols and the cards themselves.

The series will continue with more on each suit, a brief overview of the major arcana, or The Fool’s Journey, how to integrate all the aspects of a reading and tips on how to learn the tarot for yourself.

©Anya Gascoine

Anya is an endorsed tarot reader and member of the Tarot Association of the British Isles. She has been reading the tarot for over 15 years, and has an extensive knowledge of all things mystical and esoteric. To read more about the mystical arts visit her website at www.innermoo.co.uk where you can join a forum, subscribe to a newsletter, read about many interesting subjects and even buy readings online!